Oil exploration and production requires accessing subterranean formations deep below the surface of the earth, up to several miles. Due to the complexity of the underground environment, drilling requires far more than vertically drilling beneath the surface. Instead, the drilling direction must be controlled to avoid rock beds, correct for directional errors and housing roll, and to reach or maintain a position within a target subterranean destination or formation with a drilling string. Accordingly, directional drilling involves controlling the direction of drilling in a horizontal, as well as vertical direction, and a combination of both.
One type of directional drilling involves rotary steerable drilling systems. Rotary steerable drilling allows a drill string to rotate continuously while steering the drill string to a desired target location in a subterranean formation. Rotary steerable drilling systems are generally positioned at a lower end of the drill string and typically include a rotating drill shaft or mandrel, a housing that anchors in the borehole and rotatably supports the drill shaft, and additional components within the housing that adjust the direction of extension of the drill bit at the end of the drill shaft relative the anchored housing.